Mine disaster dominates the papers

The Pike River mine disaster dominates the papers as the situation for the 29 miners is becomes bleaker by the hour, by the day.

NZ Herald

The New Zealand Herald says Police Commissioner Howard Broad has admitted the situation for the 29 miners is becoming bleaker by the hour, by the day. The Herald says Mr Broad made the comments after security camera film revealed the scale of the blast at the mine on Friday afternoon. However, Pike River Coal chief Executive Peter Whittall says he still holds some hope.

Dominion Post

The front page of the The Dominion Post is devoted solely to the trapped West Coast miners with a photo of the video of Friday's explosion and graphics of the mine.

The lead story says if there are angels in the rugged hills around Greymouth and the West Coast it is time for them to front. The paper says not much that happened on Tuesday to make anyone feel better and asks 'when will the nightmare end?'

The Press

The Press quotes the mother of the youngest Pike River miner, Joseph Dunbar, who says she just wants to bring him home to bury him. Pip Timms recently moved to Greymouth.

She says her gut feelings coupled with her partner's knowledge of the mine led her to accept on Friday night that her cheeky, loveable lboy would not come back.

ODT

The Otago Daily Times front page is also filled with news of the miners and the headline says "Bleaker by the Hour".

The ODT says the grim reality was driven home on Tuesday for the anxious families of Pike River miners as they were shown for the first time CCTV footage which demonstrated the power of the explosion.

Also on the front page is news of a major police drug bust in Oamaru on Tuesday resulting in 14 arrests.